Kennebunk residents will vote Nov. 8 on three nonbinding referendums related to the future of hydropower dams along the Mousam River.

The three questions were placed on the ballot after the citizens group Save the Mousam submitted to selectmen more than 2,600 signatures requesting the referendums. Members of Save the Mousam told town officials they felt excluded from the decision about the future of the three dams.

The Kennebunk Light & Power District board of trustees voted in June not to relicense three Mousam River dams, which means those dams will stop generating hydroelectric power by 2022. The utility has been weighing whether to remove the three most downstream dams on the river or face potentially costly upgrades to build fish passages.

The board will surrender its licenses for the Twine Mill, Dane Perkins and Kesslen dams when they expire in March 2022. After announcing the decision to surrender the licenses, the general manager of the utility said he would contact federal regulators, state agencies and other interested parties to discuss what will happen to the concrete structures. They could be removed, stay in place or have fish passages added.

Local conservationists and sportsmen support removing some or all of the dams, including the large Kesslen Dam in downtown Kennebunk, because it would allow the lower 9 miles of the Mousam to flow freely. But some riverfront homeowners raised concerns about the release of contaminated sediments, how lower water levels at impoundments would affect property values, and whether the changes would worsen flood risks.

The referendums – which appear as questions 4, 5 and 6 on the ballot – are advisory. Question 4 asks if residents would like Kennebunk Light & Power to continue to invest in hydropower generation facilities along the Mousam River. Question 5 asks if voters want the town to maintain and improve existing conditions along the Mousam River by keeping the dams in place whether or not they generate hydropower. Question 6 asks if residents want the opportunity to vote prior to a final board of trustees decision on whether the dams should generate hydropower, remain in place or be removed.


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